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11.29.2010

Say what you like about lutefisk, the Swedes do Christmas RIGHT. I bought a tin of pepparkakor at IKEA on Saturday, mostly because the tin was so damn cute! It was covered in Jenny Nyström pictures, and let's just say I now want my whole apartment to say I-Pretend-I'm-Scandinavian-at-Christmas.

11.22.2010

After a walk in my neighborhood, I am now cuddled up in slippers and bathrobe, sipping on chicken noodle soup before I start my roasted chicken sandwich (The Palatine Pleaser: arugula, basil mayo...) and then finish up with sparkling cider and ginger-lemon cookies.

Oz is curled up warm with me in our hobbit hole, and I remember how thankful I am for snow, for shelter, for good food, and rest. Somehow a world covered in soft white crystals is such an easier one to love and to live in.

11.19.2010

Within the past few years I've realized that both Elton John and Billy Joel are not beloved by everyone as much as--well, in my opinion--they should be. I mean, how can you not love these men and their piano ballads? When I think of how integral their music has been in my life... Oh, my soul.

11.16.2010

Honestly, when will we get a self-serve frozen yogurt shop? WHEN? This pic is my frozen yogurt from the Mirage in Vegas. We hiked back up the strip just to visit it a second time when my mom and I were there. (Her choice of toppings was, however, quite different than mine.)

11.12.2010

But I can still laugh at myself! And I haven't yet bought a baby-bjorn to carry him around in! (Though Christmas is right around the corner if you're looking for gift ideas for me.) No, but seriously, you guys. Shame be damned, caution to the wind: I am in love with my cat. Not in the way people fall in love, because our physical affection stops at cuddling and grooming, but rather in the 'special' way that animals and people fall in love. You know, where you're attached enough that other people doubt your ability to maintain a healthy social life, but not to the point where it's illegal (in most states)?

Like, for example, there are certain songs that make me think of him. Say, "The Air That I Breathe" by The Hollies. Or "How Can I Tell You" by Cat Stevens. Or, sometimes, I'll spend over an hour taking pictures of him or the two of us together.

Yes, he is only potty-trained in a very loose sense of the word(s). Yes, he knocks over cups of water onto books. Yes, he leaves bite and claw marks all over my hands, drops bits of food all around his dish, covers my clothing in hair, scratches my favorite furniture, and isn't nice to other animals he's met since moving in with me.

BUT YOU GUYS. He loves to eat cat-nip, and go on wild drug-fueled trips as a result. When we change the sheets on the bed, he loves to be under them on his back, attacking any movement above with all four paws. He loves to show his belly, all the time, any time. One time we were driving and I was crying, and he meowed so I let him out of his carrier, and rather than hide in the back seats he silently sat stretched on my lap as I pet (petted?) him for the whole half-hour ride home.

As I awkwardly and boringly confessed to my co-workers the other day, I'm shocked by how much I love him. Like, I knew I'd probably like him a lot. But now I totally get how people become crazy obsessed with their animals.

A scene from Peter's Friends (1992) hits a little close to home. Emma Thompson's character, Maggie, is about to leave her cat, Michael, with a sitter before she leaves for her vacation.

[To the sitter]: "I've never left him alone before. I've left pictures of myself everywhere."

[To the cat]: "Look, Michael. MAGGIE."

[Back to sitter]: "That's supposed to help. Please don't let him follow me into the hall 'cause he might try and...run after me." [realizes cat is gone] "Where is he?"

11.02.2010

I haven't ever kept a steady diary or journal, except maybe when traveling or one time I had a prayer journal (filled mostly with anxious pleas that my desired prom date would say 'yes' or at least let me down easy). But this last month has been so full of events that I sort of wish I had a place to keep track of all I've been seeing, but I suppose that's something I can use the ol' blog for.

With December and its MRI approaching quickly, I'm glad I've redeemed my 'Lost Summer' with such a packed Fall.